I remember my beloved Aunt Jackie telling me years ago, “Your hair is the accessory you take with you everywhere.” I think she was helping me decide on a fun new haircut from a more expensive than usual salon. Of course, she was right. Throughout history, the story of changes in fashion and sometimes politics can be told through wardrobes and accessories—and that includes hair!

            So let’s take a look at some of the greatest, most absurd, most controversial, and most lasting hairstyles of history.

Medieval Hairstyles

            Life in Medieval England was heavily influenced by the Catholic Church. This extended to hairstyles. Around the 10th century, the Church began issuing statements about the appropriate length of men’s hair and the need for women to cover their heads and hair. In 1073, Pope Gregory VII banned beards and mustaches among the clergy. Some clergymen instructed the population to follow their clean-shaven example to demonstrate their dedication to the Church. King Henry I cut his hair and shaved his beard in 1130 to please the Church. This style, with men’s hair length about to the shoulder and clean shaven, lasted through the next few hundred years.

            Women traditionally had long hair which they braided or dressed in chignons. At this time, it became fashionable for women to reveal their foreheads—no one would think of wearing bangs! Single women sometimes secured their hair with silk threads or fine netting and ornaments. Hair was considered part of a woman’s sexuality—in fact, a married woman’s hair was considered her husband’s property. Married women were required to cover their hair with a veil when they attended Church gatherings or went to public places.

Renaissance Hairstyles

            As the Reformation progressed, the strict rules of the Catholic Church began to disappear in some places. In England, this was reflected in hairstyles. 

            Even before the break with Rome, Henry VIII and other early modern monarchs tried wearing beards (Henry VIII and Francis I famously promised each other they wouldn’t shave until they met at the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520. Henry spoiled the game by shaving early, and it was left to Thomas Boleyn to explain to Francis and the French contingency that the King had bowed to the request of Katherine of Aragon who preferred her husband clean-shaven.) Many men of the 16th century wore a short beard, closely cropped and dressed frequently to maintain the shape and style. 

            Coloring hair became popular during this time as well. In fact, the famous astrologer and reputed seer, Nostradamus, published some recipes for elixirs to turn hair blond. Other colors became more popular as the century progressed—when Elizabeth I was on the throne, some women tried to dye their hair red to match that of the Queen.

            Elizabeth’s reign in particular saw women abandon the notion of covering their hair with a hood and veil. Hair was visible in Elizabethan England, decorated with jewels and ornaments. The focus on the forehead became even more pronounced, as women sometimes plucked out hair to take their hairline back and reveal more forehead. There’s a great example of this in the marvelous BBC production Elizabeth R starring the brilliant Glenda Jackson. If you have not seen this, do yourself a favor and watch it as soon as possible. I’ve read that Glenda Jackson was so dedicated to the part that she plucked and shaved and did whatever it took to get her hairline to represent that of Queen Elizabeth’s. So, when I look into the mirror and see my own hairline retreating, I can remind myself that I’m just leaning into my Tudor obsession. In other words, I don’t just wear my love of the Tudors on my sleeve, I wear it in my hair—the accessory I take with me everywhere!

            Of course, if hair is exposed for the world to see, what happens when it turns grey or begins to thin? You’ll notice from portraits of Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots, that didn’t seem to happen to royals. Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret: wigs! Even though St. Bernard de Clairvaux said in the twelfth century that women who wore wigs were committing a mortal sin, this condemnation had been swept away. Queen Elizabeth had several wigs—some people think as many as 80! The wigs covered her the reality of ageing, something that became a popular political stand as Elizabeth refused to marry and produce an heir. 

            Mary Queen of Scots, a redhead like Queen Elizabeth, also wore a wig. As the years went by, she crafted an image of a beautiful royal martyr. Portraits of her show her in modest widow’s wear, with dark clothing and understated hairdressing. As a strong Catholic, she covers most of her hair. But clearly visible around her face is the lovely red hair of her youth. Or so people thought. At her execution, when the executioner held up her head, he was left holding only the red wig, as her head with its cropped grey hair fell to the ground. Bit of a morbid way to find out she was wearing a wig, right?

Revolutionary Hair

            As we leave the Tudors and move into the Stuart reign, it’s the men whose hair takes center stage. Starting with Charles I, the second Stuart King of England, big wigs were the style of Kings. This is where we get the phrase “big wig” to mean someone of wealth and power today. The notion of a “big wig” sometimes meant someone whose wealth and power put them out of touch with the real world. That’s what happened with Charles I and his long, abundant curls.

            In fact, the abundance of all that curly hair gave the King and the royalists their nickname during the English Civil War: The Cavaliers. It is associated with the French word chevalier meaning horse—think horse main, abundant hair, dressed and styled for royal processions. The Parliamentarians, on the other hand, were known as the Roundheads because they couldn’t afford the huge wigs and their closely cropped hair showed the round shape of their heads. In portraits of the Civil War, the Roundheads are shown wearing helmets (also round) and the Cavaliers are shown wearing fancy hats with feathers. Which do you think would be better for fighting a war?

            Whatever they actually wore during battle, the Parliamentary forces prevailed and Charles I lost his head (and his curly wig) on January 30, 1649. It was a stunning development that changed the monarchy and the country forever. Oliver Cromwell established a republic known as the “Commonwealth of England.” After his death, his son Richard took over, but without a power base in Parliament or the Army he was forced to resign. Parliament made adjustments to the role of the King and Parliament and invited Charles II, son of the beheaded King, to return from France and take the throne.

            You might think after a civil war and execution, Charles II might try to appear a little less remote and removed from the common people. Not so much. His wigs were bigger and grander than his father’s! And when he died without an heir, his brother James took over—another big wig. In fact, James pushed Parliament too far when he married a Catholic after his first wife died and managed to have a son, introducing the possibility of a Catholic heir to the throne. Parliament invited William and Mary to take the throne, and James II with his big wig were forced out in 1869.

Victorian Style

            After more bewigged Stuarts and Hanoverians, hairstyles change when Victoria comes to the throne in 1837. As a young, unmarried woman, Victoria wore her hair down for her coronation as Queen. Victoria wore her hair put up with a simple wreath of orange blossoms for her wedding. In portraits and photographs from her wedding and beyond, Victoria’s simple hairstyle is evident. She adopted a style in line with the time, with her hair dressed up and a long loop over her ears or pulled back completely.   

            After Prince Albert died in 1861, the Queen went into deep mourning, which was reflected in the way she dressed and styled her hair. She dressed in black for the rest of her life. Her hair was pulled back more severely, tucked under her widow’s veil. Only after years of pleading from Parliament ministers did she agree to wear a small crown with a more elaborate veil.

The Brothers and Their Wives

            The twentieth century saw royal women again setting the pace for hairstyles that made a mark. An interesting comparison is that between Wallis Simpson and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon —the women who married royal brothers, both of whom became King! When the future Edward VIII was Prince of Wales, he was the fashion focus of the Royal Family. He popularized what is now known as the Prince of Wales collar, wore his ties in particular knots, wore wide checked suits, and embraced a broad color palette. It’s no surprise that he would attract a woman known for her high fashion. 

            Wallis Simpson loved fashion and influenced fashion choices around the world. Her clothes sparked controversy. She collaborated with Salvador Dali, who designed a lobster print for a gown she wore in 1937. Her style became more sophisticated the more famous and controversial she became. Her hair reflected her interest in sporting the latest fashion—understated and elegant she always looked as if she had just stepped out of the salon. And in essence she did. She called on her hairdresser, Alexandre de Paris, to dress her hair every day. Royal photographer Cecil Beaton described her hair as so smooth and glossy that a fly would slip off it.

             Compared to this polished, bright, and brittle elegance is the more down to earth style of the Prince of Wales’s brother. Before he became George VI, the man known as Bertie was happy to live quietly out of the spotlight. When his brother abdicated and he unexpectedly became King, he knew he and his wife would need to look the part.

            In comparison to the sharp angles of Wallace Simpson, the new Queen Elizabeth can best be described as soft. Her hairstyles as a young woman were flowing curls; when she became Duchess of York after her marriage, her hair was dressed more formally but still soft around the edges. For her wedding, she chose a Medieval inspired dress, and always preferred fluid shapes and drapes that were flattering to her figure. Her designer came up with an uncluttered look with matching outfit, hat, gloves, bag, and shoes. Her hair became part of this, with hats designed to show her face to the crowd and hair tucked neatly and securely away.

            After the shock of an abdication, the new King and Queen deliberately cultivated a family-based and family-friendly image. They wished to reassure the public that they were exactly the right family to represent Britain as the war loomed. During the war, when Queen Elizabeth visited the bombed-out areas in London, her look was again uncluttered and soft, with fabrics that fell in flattering ways and hair tucked away under her hat.

The Queen and Her Family

            The tucked away hairstyle seems to have been adopted by the elder daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the current Queen. Her hairstyle has remained largely the same throughout her reign, serving primarily as a place to display the elegant crowns and tiaras at evening events and spectacular hats during the day. The Queen has been known to let her hair down, so to speak, in casual events, wearing a scarf over her hair while riding or attending races or family events. That’s about as far as she goes.

            But even if her own hair has been less than remarkable, there have been some spectacular hairstyles during Queen Elizabeth II’s reign! Let’s consider just a few to finish our discussion. 

            Princess Margaret’s curly hair was typically kept fairly short and dressed away from her face in a style not that much different from her sister’s. But there were a few times Margaret really let her hair down.  During the 1960s, Margaret grew out her hair and wore it long, stepping away from the “like Elizabeth” look of earlier years. The longer hair allowed for a big pouf, which is a key component of one of the most iconic photographs of Princess Margaret ever taken: wearing the Poltimore tiara in the bathtub! The photo was taken by Antony Lord Snowdon, who didn’t release it publicly until four years after the Princess’s death. His family has withdrawn it from public view, but it can’t be erased from memory.

            And of course, on the heels of Princess Margaret is the woman who rocked the Royals to the core and changed the image of monarchy forever: Diana, Princess of Wales. Her hairstyle seems to echo her overall change in fashion. The early images of the blunt bob with long bangs she could almost hide behind matched the ruffles and bows of her early outfits. Her cut remained similar in her early marriage, although she added highlights to brighten it up a bit. She was growing out her hair a bit, which was captured in a fantastic photograph of her on a tour of Australia and New Zealand. Her hair sparkles, the Spencer tiara sparkles, and her smile is dazzling.

            In the 1980s, Diana tried longer hair for a while. She added bangs and volume in her hair and shoulders through the decade. Toward the end of the 80s, her haircut was choppier and shorter and her bangs styled off her face. In the 90s, she opts for shorter bangs and curls shortly before her separation from Prince Charles. In 1995, Diana wore a daring, slicked back style for the Fashion Designers Awards in New York. The new look generated lots of press! For the final years of her life, Diana’s hair was short and chic and elegant. She looked professional, confident, and ready for anything.

            The tragic death of Princess Diana in 1997 left a void in the world, and especially in the lives of her two sons. Both boys have grown up and gotten married, and their wives now offer the hairstyles of the future. With bouncy curls, sleek ponytails, chic updos, and messy buns, the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex are making royal style their own.

            So…what do you think the royal style will be in the next 20 years?!?!

            Thank you for joining me for this look at the history of the accessory we all carry with us every day: our hair! Join me next time as we continue looking behind the scenes and into the closets of the Royals. Till then!